(Tanzania) Beautiful beach in Zanzibar

The beach of Zanzibar has beautiful color that I am so happy to see it.

30th July 2013
Today I start my day with getting lost on a narrow street. Haha

One of reasons why Stone Town is attractive is their door. Every door is very different.

I am trying to find a post office, but as usual in Zanzibar I get lost. I just sit on the street and talk with people. He says it takes three hours to draw.

I talk with a shoes maker. He is making shoes all by his hand. I’ve never seen people make a product all by their hand that it is really interesting to see him. He says he will make shoes for me. But it is too heavy to put on my luggage, so I just smile at him.

All by hands

At this time I talk with a painter. He says it takes three days to draw and it is 30$. I though they print a drawing on a factory. But it was not, they just draw all by their hands.
One of drawings at the inside is about cycling. It is only 10$ that I want to buy. I keep thinking and just give up buying it. Maybe I am gonna buy some drawings for a gift in Kenya.
So, where is a post office???

They shout at me as greeting.

I lost again. Where is a post office? Hahahaha

I play marbles with them. I loved playing this kind thing when I was young.

Plants are on a drain. Almost after two hours I find a post office. Tomorrow morning I will come again to send letters. Today is just to check.

During getting lost, I find some beautiful local post card. I ask price. He says it is 8,000 shilling (5$) for one. I am supposed to buy six post cards, and it is too expensive. When I just turn around, he stops me and tries to make a price cheaper. He says 7,0000 shilling for one. But still it is expensive, so I just turn around. He holds me again and keeps trying price down. Finally he gives me one post card 1000 shilling (70 cents). So I buy six post cars for 4$. If I pay what they said at first, I should have bought those for 30$. I am wondering if I am a local people, what they start for price at first.
Tourist places in Tanzania are weird that many of them try to cheat tourists. In some Tanzanian village where I’ve been, people usually don’t cheat. But in tourist place such as Zanzibar or Moshi, they try to cheat foreigner, because foreigner is just Mzungu.
(Mzungu means foreigner in their language. I’ve heard millions of times Mzungu during cycling. They don’t know that shouting at somebody’s face Mzungu is racist thing.)
Anyway I love those post cards. It looks all made by hands. I wanted to buy many cards, but it was hard to write all people I want to send.

Still it is Ramadan which is fasting from 6 am to 6:30 pm for Muslim for one month. They try to prohibit even not Muslim people eating or drinking on the public place. They don’t open restaurant during day time as well. Only expensive tourist restaurant opens that I am doing kind of fasting, because I don’t have choice.
When I wander on the street, I hear something. They pray five times on a day, and they use loudspeaker. It means right now 6:30 pm that I can buy and eat something on the road! YEAH!!!!!!!!
It is time to eat!!!!!
There are many people eating something. I think there is something to buy, but I hesitate because there is no woman.
I ask one man
“Is this okay to go there?”
“No, you are woman and you can’t go into Mosque.”
“No, I mean beside Mosque. It looks I can buy something there.”
“Oh, Yes, you can.”
But I am a bit afraid of going there that I just turn around.

After 6:30 pm, there are many people who did fasting during day time at the local market . I am so hungry as well that I eat many things at there.

It is totally different from the night market which is located at the park. This is for the local and that is for the tourist. Here is much cheaper, and menu is also different. But the night market at the park is cleaner, and price is twice expensive.

Muslim doesn’t eat pork. I am not sure why. But I think I heard something about it that they don’t eat pork, because pork is dirty. On the picture it is chicken; it is the biggest I’ve eaten at the same price. It is only 500 Tsh (30cents). Maybe that’s why there are many people.

Believe or not.
One of people in Tanzania told me that during Ramadan it is the most profitable month a year for restaurant.
One time I was wondering how they don’t drink and eat anything during day. One of them said they are trained since they were children.
But not all people do it. One of people I met on the beach said he doesn’t do fasting. He just eats as normal. He said ‘If my mother knows this one, she will be angry with me.’

31st July 2013
This is the hostel where I’ve stayed for five nights. I think the first day was more expensive, because I came with a tout. From the third night, the price was 11$. The good thing at hostel is I can use WiFi. The bad thing is a disgusting smell is coming from the sewer. Especially it is during Ramadan that I have to bring some chapati and eat at hostel with a disgusting smell. Hahaha.

It is my first time to face Islam culture that it is very interesting. Anyway I checked where the post office is yesterday, but I can’t find it again. I got lost almost for 30 minutes with a bike. I think how I cycle alone around the world is 8 wonders of the world. hehehehe

As asking many times, I could find a post office and send letters with gifts. I was shocked that it was too cheap. Only 2,200 shilling (1.4$) to send a letter from Africa to other continents. If I knew it, I have sent more often. After that I look around the park.

Today I am going to Nungwi beach with a bike and stay two nights over there. After Nungwi I will take a local boat where it is located at one hour from Nungwi. It means today is the last day in Stone town.

Local people are watching a local people who is fishing.

During cycling I meet interesting people. He can speak local language. He says he used to live in Kenya. Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda use the same language as Swahili. He is cycling for one month for a vacation.

This is the town I will take a small boat to a main land.

I started cycling at the noon from Stone Town and arrive in Nungwi at 5 pm. I cycled around 63 km (40 mi) today. It was hard day because of Ramadan. I wanted to respect local people that I had to drink water at hide. I couldn’t find any restaurant during cycling as well.

If you are asking me ‘why are you cycling?’, then I will ask you ‘why are you living?’

In front of beach, there is the sign which nobody cares.

I ask an owner when Italian couple whom I traveled together for a few days in Zanzibar left. The owner says they left at 1 pm. I wish I can meet them again in Italy later.

There are many tourists at Nungwi beach that it is much easy to buy beer more than at Stone town. After taking shower, there is already dark that I couldn’t see sunset. I eat dinner at next restaurant and buy some beers. The owner at bar says they will play guitar with other tourist. I drink one beer with them. It is really nice to hear playing guitar with drinking beer at a small hut. I bring two beers to hostel. But too tired to drink all.

1st August 2013
I walk at beach at morning. Personally Nungwi is the most beautiful beach in Zanzibar.

Local boats

They are catching fish.

I walk to the place many local people are working. I was wondering why they burned wood. They say it makes wood smooth, and they can get bend wood. They put some kind of oil on wood and burn it. Then they take off soot. He hands me tool to have chance to take off it. But a tool is too big, and I couldn’t do it properly. I just smile, and give him it back.

The wood which I tried to do with a tool will be used at bottom, I guess.

They are shaving wood for the inside of ship.

This is really interesting thing that it is a drill. A string is connected at the each edge. When he is moving from the left to the right, the center is moved and it can make hole. What an interesting stuff ever!

He tells me that it takes two or three months to make a ship. It is really interesting that they make a ship all by their hands.

I feel like I come to another world that they make everything with their own hands.

At the other side, people are making a net. All the time when I ask to take picture, they allow me to take picture without asking money. They are very kind to me.
He says it takes ten month to make a net. I though he doesn’t know English word, day and month. So, I ask him again, ‘it takes 10 days?’. ‘No, it takes 10 month to make!”
Wow. That is too long!!!!!!!!!!!!
These days most of thing is made by a machine, and I can’t find any human thing from that. I think that is the most different thing between made by human and by machine.
If something is made by hand, it can be meant there is human soul.

As keeping walking to down, I can see more beautiful color beach. Actually I didn’t have a plan to come to Zanzibar, because I didn’t know Zanzibar has beautiful beach. When I research it on online, I decide to come to Zanzibar.

Actually reviews on online are very different. Some of them say Zanzibar is the best. Some of them say Zanzibar is just one of beach, and most of picture of Zanzibar is just the photographs.

For me Zanzibar is the best place in Africa. Here is a beautiful sunset.

I buy some local food with beer and have it in front of beach. There are so many expensive resorts along the beach. Am I jealousy of them? Do I dream to sleep there one day?
Whatever I sleep at expensive hotel, or at cheap hostel; the thing that never can be changed is always beautiful ocean will be here.

2nd August 2013
I came back to Stone town, which I didn’t expect I will be here again. Something happened that I couldn’t take a local boat. I have to take a ferry to go back to a main land.
Actually I was the worst angry ever with behaving of local people. They just kept cheating, because I am solo Asian woman; the most reason is I am Mzungu.
Just I am so sad that I’ve tried all the time to respect local people. But some of them just keep trying to cheat and bother me. There are too many challenging to cycle in Africa. But the thing is anyway there are more beautiful people in Africa.

I can never deny the thing Zanzibar is the most beautiful place in Africa. If somebody ask which place is my favorite in Africa, I am gonna answer “Zanzibar!”
It is time to leave Zanzibar!
Bye, Zanzibar!

Hello, it’s Jin from South Korea.
I have been cycling through America, Latin
America, Africa, Europe, Middle East, and Asia since Sept of 2011.
I upload my journal, information, travel tip,
resource, review, and gears on my website.
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Jin

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Distance of Cycling : 70,735.93 km // 43,953 mi
Current Place : Melbourne, Australia
Last update : 22nd, December, 2018
Plan : Australia (Cycling South Coast and Desert and maybe north coast? until Mar or April)-China-North Korea(If Korean governments give me permission; But no any Korean traveler was allowed to pass on the land so far)-South Korea
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(I have cycled over 7 years and 2 month so far Since 1st Sept 2011)